Earlier this month, an 84-year-old Covid-19 patient from Haryana became the first Indian recipient of an antibody drug cocktail authorised for emergency use by the Centre. He got over Covid and was discharged from hospital after being treated with the drug regimen that shot into prominence after it was used to treat former US President Donald Trump.
To make things clearer, the therapy is literally a cocktail of two “monoclonal antibodies”, or proteins, that the body generates to defend itself against any disease. Monoclonal antibodies are artificially created in a laboratory and tailor-made to fight a particular disease.
Senior doctors like Naresh Trehan, cardiologist and CMD of Medanta, cite trial findings to say that the cocktail is able to reduce the chance of hospitalisation by 70 per cent in patients with mild to moderate Covid-19 symptoms. “This means 70 per cent of people who would otherwise need to go to hospital will not need hospitalisation. It will also reduce the death rate," said Dr Trehan, according to India Today.
Casirivimab and imdevimab, which are part of the antibody cocktail produced by Switzerland-based Roche, are specifically directed against the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2. They block the virus's attachment and subsequent entry into human cells. Using two antibodies protects against the body's resistance to them.
Roche said the antibody cocktail, approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in November 2020, is to be administered for the treatment of mild or moderate Covid-19 in adults and paediatric patients 12 years or older weighing at least 40kg who are at high risk of developing severe Covid-19.
The antibody cocktail can be administered intravenously or subcutaneously (under the skin) as an injection. It takes about 20-30 minutes for a full dose of an antibody cocktail to be administered. The patient is then monitored for an hour to check for adverse reactions.
“Within one week, this treatment can help patients become RT-PCR negative,” Dr D. Nageshwar Reddy, chairperson AIG Hospitals Hyderabad, told India Today. He said that AIG was conducting a study to look at the efficacy of this treatment against the double mutant variant of the virus.
On May 7, Roche India, the Indian arm of the Swiss pharmaceuticals company, announced that the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation, the country’s drug regulatory authority, had granted an emergency use authorisation to the cocktail of casirivimab and imdevimab.
The EUA will enable Roche to import the globally manufactured product batches to India where it will be marketed and distributed by the Indian company Cipla, Roche said. The first batch of the drug became available in the country early this week The price for a dose of 1,200mg (600 mg of casirivimab and 600 mg of imdevimab) is Rs 59,750. A multi-dose pack (each pack can treat two patients) has been priced at Rs 1,19,500. It has to be stored at 2-8 degrees Celsius.
The treatment is being offered at Medanta Hospital in Gurugram, Haryana. Delhi's Fortis Escorts Heart Institute will also start offering the therapy at the facility soon, reported PTI.
PS: This column (source: Union ministry of health, WHO, CDC) is for general information. For specific concerns, especially for those with comorbidities, it is advisable to consult your family physician.